Holy cross/Rowan Prep vs Surbiton High

[humptydumptymom]

Hi,
We are looking to move into the kingston area before our DD starts school.
Can anyone please explain the pros and cons of prep schools (upto 11+) over schools like surbiton/guildford high (3-18)?
Do girls in these high schools also need to sit for entrance in their after 11+?

Many thanks for your kind responses.

Re surbiton high, in the past you went straight through from age 4 to 18 but it's changed now, you need to check the website. In reality the dd find it's too long to be at 1 school and often want to change at 6th form.

Guildford high is hard to get into age 4 as it has an assessment and your dd needs to be an outstanding all rounder to thrive there. You would need a back up option like Tormead.

The Kingston esher Cobham area has lots and lots of prep options and people moving to the area can find it overwhelming. It's better to focus on housing and commute and then look for a local prep school. Rowan is a fantastic school in the village like Claygate but the trains to London are slower than Esher/Surbiton.

The state primaries are also good in somewhere like Thames Ditton.

If you want to go further out Danes Hill prep in Oxshott is getting a new head from St Paul's boys prep school Barnes in Sept making it currently very popular for reception admissions.

Holy cross is a very good option too.

@sunshineclouds24 thanks a lot. We quite liked Hampton Village and molesey area lots of greenery around. its equidistant in terms of travel to holy cross or old vicarage. Bit undecided on whether we should go for a prep school or schools that go upto 18. We will check out Thames Ditton

The traffic is terrible! You couldn't get to holy cross or The old vic from Hampton village/ molesey. For the old vic you need to live within walking distance of the school.
If you like Hampton village (slow trains to London so lower house prices) then look at Jack and Jill and LEH juniors or twickenham prep.
For molesey look at the Kingston prep schools, newland house and the Walton preps or small prep schools like Weston green.

If you just want to move to Kingston and choose Surbiton high that's a good option too and you can always move your dd or try for Tiffin at age 11 if you want.

@sunshineclouds24 thanks. I had no idea about the traffic

@humptydumptymom , Hampton court bridge currently has roadworks for 3 months which aren't too bad and later this year the council are closing a bridge on ember Lane for up to a year to rebuild it which will mean you can only get to Molesey via Hampton court way or via Walton!

@sunshineclouds24 That doesn't sound fun for anyone doing school runs from the other side. Heard some commute from twickenham to holy cross, given the state of traffic that must be hard as well

If you are aiming for Twickenham it would be crazy to choose Holy Cross over Jack and Jill! J&J is a brilliant school!

Hi, I wanted to get your thoughts on some of the good independent schools in the KT2. We know that independent private only matter so much, so we’re looking for something that has a blend of value for money and a good education. Any recommendations ?

@Southfieldsmaybe , the top 3 for dd are the 3 on this thread - Holy Cross, Surbiton prep and Rowan. The top 3 for ds are Rokeby, Surbiton Prep and Shrewsbury House. It helps if you know if you are aiming for private secondary, grammar or state secondary. For example Shrewsbury House prefers you to stay until 13 and consider boarding schools.
There are other options too - The Study New Malden, Westbury House, Park Hill. You need to visit each of these to see their usp and if they would suit your dc.

Wanted to check - is surbtiton prep is surbiton high ?

What are your thoughts on state primary or independent. We’re fairly certain we want to do independent for secondary, but are wondering if it’s worth it for primary.

Surbiton High is the girls school from 11-18. In the same part of surbiton and same school group they have 2 prep schools, 1 for girls and 1 for boys that ends at age 11. They all share the sports grounds in Hinchley Wood along with Rowan prep school which is owned by the same company - United Learning.

The secondary schools like Hampton, LEH, Kingston grammar take at least 50% from the state sector at age 11. If you have a good state primary school and have time to tutor and pay for individual music lessons, sports etc your dc will be in exactly the same situation as those in prep schools. Many parents choose prep schools for the longer day / wrap around care, private minibus transport, music / sport opportunities, small classes as well as the education. It depends on your dc, your local state primary and your secondary school destination expectations.